1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of tools for fence building, and in particular to a vehicle mounted apparatus for unrolling and stretching fence wire.
2. Description of the Related Art
The building of farm fences can be an extremely laborious and time consuming task. First, the fence posts are generally set at regular intervals along the planned fence line. At each end of the fence is a corner post which is preferably cross-braced to resist tension in the fence wire. The posts between the corner posts are generally referred to as line posts.
After the posts are set, the fence wire must be rolled out, tensioned, and attached to the posts. Wire used in farm fences is typically either barbed wire or woven wire (which is available in various heights including 26 inch, 32 inch, 39 inch, 47 inch, 49 inch and 55 inch heights). An end of a roll of wire is first connected to one of the corner posts, and the wire is then unrolled along the length of the fence. After the wire is unrolled, it must be tensioned or “stretched” so that the fence wire is tight. The wire is then tied off to the second corner post and secured to each of the line posts.
The step of unrolling fence wire is made difficult by the weight of the rolls of wire. A standard quarter mile (1320 foot) roll of 12½ gauge barbed wire may weigh in the neighborhood of 85 pounds. Woven fence wire is even more difficult to manage because a standard 330 foot roll of 47 inch woven wire may weigh 200-300 pounds depending upon the wire gauge.
Rolls of fence wire have generally been unrolled manually by either rolling the roll of wire along the ground, or by inserting a bar through the center of the roll and carrying the roll of wire by the bar such that the bar becomes an axle about which the roll rotates. Each of these methods has its disadvantages. When attempting to roll a roll of wire along the ground, debris such as grass and sticks can become entangled in the wire and prevent it from unrolling easily. In addition, the roll may become snagged upon rocks or stumps, fall into ruts, or be otherwise be made difficult to roll by uneven ground.
One person may sometimes manage a roll of barbed wire on an axle by grasping an end of the axle in each hand, however the person often finds that his shirt quickly becomes snagged by the barbs. Two people can manage a roll of barbed wire more easily, however a second person is not always available. Even two people will find it difficult to manage a 200-300 pound roll of woven wire in this manner.
After the wire is rolled out, the tensioning operation is typically accomplished manually using a small hand winch, block and tackle, or lever operated wire stretching device.
Previous vehicle-mounted devices have been designed to unroll and stretch fence wire, however these devices have generally been designed to mount on a three-point hitch of a farm tractor. Examples of such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,914,270 to Parker, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,048,348 to Griffin; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,163,634 to Moon et al. These devices all suffer from being relatively large, heavy, complex pieces of equipment. In addition, these devices require the use of a tractor, which is not always readily available.
What is needed is a simple, lightweight device for unrolling and tensioning fence wire which is mountable on a light utility vehicle such as a pickup truck.